Elle sat behind you in the dim hotel room. Her fingers were slow but sure, weaving your hair into a neat braid.

“You’re too tense,”

she said softly.

“If you don’t calm down you’ll never finish this report.”

You glanced back, caught in the warmth of her voice.

“Maybe I just like you distracting me,” you said.

She smiled, quiet and knowing.

“That’s not a distraction, that’s motivation.”